The present invention generally relates to the field of information management and more particularly relates to a paradigm and conceptual framework for cognitive perception, by clarifying the substantive meaning of quantitative measurements which are made in relation to either a physically observable, or a virtually conceivable, event, or series of events.
A problem and areas of concern regarding the preservation of historic artifacts and sites.
Beginning in 1989, we became increasingly involved in the local, national and international preservation community. Through this involvement with historic house museums, and museums housed in modern buildings, we became increasingly concerned that the methods of monitoring museum conditions, relating to the preservation of historic artifacts, were not very informative and, in many ways, were of limited or little use. Buildings are generally complex environments and housing collections of artifacts within a building increases that complexity many times. Looking into environmental monitoring revealed that methods and procedures being used were generally not very informative. Monitoring locations were few and generally not well placed in regards to efficient data collection. The data collected was generally displayed on x-y axis charts or in columnar table format. The data was generally shown as independent information without relationship to anything other than time.
In 1990, we were involved in a one day workshop concerning the various ways a structure can be monitored. The workshop was called xe2x80x9cMonitoring of Structuresxe2x80x94Why, How and . . . xe2x80x9d. The two main purposes of the workshop were (1) to show practitioners within the Historic Preservation community basic ways to look at and monitor a structure and (2) to have a panel discussion of some of the false standards that many people believed they should be achieving with their monitoring programs.
In preparation for this workshop, we contacted many representatives and manufacturers of monitoring equipment, to learn about their systems and the information that could be provided. The amazing thing that was discovered was that to achieve any complex monitoring program (most monitoring programs should have some levels of complexityxe2x80x94looking for relationships as well as independent and dependent conditions) many different methods of data collection needed to be used, including different types of equipment. Along with, and on top of this, would be the difficulty of viewing the different types of data collected and turning it into something useful that the individuals involved with the structures could understand and use.
Over the next few years there was increased contact with other individuals involved in the investigation of the conditions of structures. Repeatedly the issues that came up were: (1) How toil best monitor a condition? and (2) What relevant information could be gleaned out of the accumulated data.
It was hard to know how to correctly interpret much of the data. If many locations were monitored, it would be difficult to work out the relationships and influences between points. Usually more questions than answers came up. Usually there were questions of what else might be happening within a structure that could have influenced the data. The need to standardize the collection and interpretation process was important. The huge commercial niche of manufacturers that build monitoring systems made it possible to use very, sophisticated instruments and techniques. The problem was that many times the more sophisticated methods and data only caused more confusion and misinterpretation of the data. The individual points of data were becoming more precise which meant they were interpreted as truth even when the real question as to what they meant had not been worked out. The more individual points of data became important, without the understanding of the relationships between points of data, the worse the situation became. We imagined using the power of the computer to be able to standardize and simplify the ability of individuals to view data in a graphically easy way to interpret symbols. This would allow individuals to look for influences and relationships rather than get lost in the data itself.
Many times there were real needs and value for installing a monitoring system at a historic site. In these situations, efforts were made to influence the historic site into installing a monitoring system. After the historic site would check with other sites as to the success and value of their efforts at monitoring, the usual response would be that there appears to be low added value and high added costs related to monitoring systems. This gets back to the method of collecting data and how the data is viewed and interpreted.
Later, during 1992-1995, as research continued into the monitoring of structures, arrangements were worked out with several prominent sites to install monitoring systems using portable data logging units. Each site had its unique conditions and needs. The sites included:
textiles at the Smithsonian Institute""s Museum of American History including the Star Spangled Banner; Gunston Hall in Lorton, Va., George Mason""s colonial home and at George Washington""s Mount Vernon, the Family Tomb including the sarcophagi of George and Martha Washington.
Each site was different from the others in the way management and conservation decisions were made. Each site was a different type of structure with unique problems and conditions that needed to be understood. Each site had its own range of independent and dependent conditions that needed to be tracked or monitored to effectively understand the items that were of concern.
From observations made during the monitoring efforts, we have determined basic problems in monitoring conditions within complex systems. For example, each site has a diverse and complex set of conditions that are independent and dependent of each other. It is the ability to identify the relationships that occur that provide the instructive information. The difficulty in reviewing the data that is collected is the inability to evaluate the relationships that exist. The result from data collection is the accumulation of information usually in numerical form. The data is usually represented in columnar tables or x-y graph form. This method of comprehending data is difficult for individuals to use. Even people experienced with reviewing data in this format have difficulty maintaining enough active information to develop even a simplistic view of relationships.
There are systems available for viewing particular data streams from particular data logging equipment. However, there are real limits to these systems when the desire is to use various types of collected data to view conditions and discover relationships of conditions. The data may come from human observations, instrument readings, instruments connected to data loggers, and existing sources of information. Each system for collecting and viewing data has different formats and requirements.
We have determined that this very process, of collecting and viewing data, itself introduces a level of complexity that makes the main reason for collecting the data, looking for relationships, even more difficult. The method of data collection needs to be presented in an orderly manner, and, equally important, in the terms that allow for an informed dialog to occur. We have also determined that the viewing, collecting, and analyzing of the data is facilitated inn an object-oriented application format.
The classic discussions of Plato and Aristotle, circa 350 BC, introduced, a distinction between perceiving the Form of an Object verses perceiving the Substance of an Object. We speak of the xe2x80x9csubstantive meaningxe2x80x9d of an event, thing, or Object. Upon reflection, the terminology inherent in the phrase xe2x80x9csubstantive meaningxe2x80x9d implies that the Substance of an Object is the true and complete measure of an Object and what the Object means, does, or affects by its existence. In a philosophical sense, discussion of the Substance of an Object speaks to the deepest nature of an Object within the physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual realms, in a most profound sense. In the senses limited to the physically observable realm, discussion of the Substance of an Object speaks to what may be measured in a standard manner, according to all standard dimensional scale of units or measurement.
In either sense, it is true that a given Substance may be manifested in numerous physical Forms. While numerous Objects may have Forms that are strongly analogous, the respective Substances of such Objects may be very different in terms of what the Objects are, do, cause, or affect. For example, a pure Substance, such as pure water, may be manifested in the Form of fog, rain, snow, etc.
The problem of recognizing and knowing the Substance of an Object is ancient and is addressed, firstly, by observation of the Object and the recording of quantitative measurements which describe the activity, or lack of activity, of the Object. As scientific understanding of natural phenomena has grown, so have the number and variety of quantitative measurements which may be observed and recorded as digitized information. In ancient times, this problem of the knowledge of Substance was bounded by the knowledge of what could be measured. Beyond the immediate scientific recording of sensor information, today, if variation is observed in a process, then a digital Value can be assigned whether the value is subjective or objective in nature. Rene Descarte long ago established the utility of a coordinate system and measurement set of reference axis for calibrating the dimensional extent of Objects.
The development of a Calculus of Indications in 1969, by G. Spencer-Brown, formalized and clarified the concept of a Boolean Arithmetic which involves both real and imaginary Boolean Values. By the very nature of the forms used to manifest said Boolean Arithmetic, it became clear that ancient discussion of Form and Substance should be revisited from a mathematical perspective, with specific attention to the implementation of computer programming languages and systems.
The first programming languages utilized the concepts of so-called, xe2x80x9crealxe2x80x9d Boolean values and xe2x80x9cTruth Tablesxe2x80x9d in a very limited and hierarchical manner. With the advent of the so-called xe2x80x9cObject-Orientedxe2x80x9d programming languages such as SmallTalk, Modula, C++, and Eiffle, the programming languages finally assumed a form which allows the full spectrum of features and implications of said Boolean Arithmetic to be utilized within a computer-implemented system. In turn, said Boolean Arithmetic provides a complete mathematical paradigm for the distinction of Objects in CyberSpace because all assertions, regarding a computer-implemented process, must be evaluated within the context of the said Boolean Arithmetic. The Form and Substance of CyberSpace Objects is, thusly, considered from this perspective. In particular, it allows the Substance of a CyberSpace Object to be represented as digital information. The Form of CyberSpace Objects speaks to the existence, interaction, inheritance, and autonomy of the Objects.
Current technology allows measurements to be observed by both analog and digital electronic probe devices. Analog-to-dilgital converters blur the distinction with regards to a source for the generation of actual digitized information. In addition, conceptual models of quantitative processes may also generate digitized information to reflect the state of their process, over time. In modern times, the problem of clarifying the knowledge of Substance is bounded by the volume of measurements which can be processed in a timely and efficient manner.
Over the past three decades, computers have addressed the problem with parallel efforts in hardware and software development. Interestingly, most hardware advances focus on reliable processing speed and storage capacity, while software advances focus on formal aspects of syntax, scope, semantics, and Form. Modern software has evolved through several Forms of manifestation, including assembly code,l block structured languages, non-procedural languages, and finally the so-called xe2x80x9cObject Orientedxe2x80x9d systems. This evolution has likewise paralleled an increased understanding of the underlying mathematical Forms which govern the modern paradigm of calculation and expression processing
Beginning with SmallTalk, advanced programming languages have embraced: an xe2x80x9cObject Orientedxe2x80x9d approach to software over the past decade and have achieved an industrial presence as exemplified by languages such as Forth, C++, Visual C++, Eiffle, and Java, among others. In a practical sense, the term CyberSpace is used to refer to a universe of virtual Objects which may interact among themselves within the physical apparatus known as the Internet, and all such Internet capable devices, whether or not they are actively connected to the InterNet.
The language of CyberSpace speaks of Objects which exist as Virtual Objects. The Objects are Virtual in the sense and the spirit that they have no physical existence beyond the realm of Cyberspace. Ultimately, CyberSpace and the Objects therein are merely an interpretation, within the Intellectual Realm, of various electronic signals being sent over a network of computers, and enabling devices of display and expression. However, the intellectual interpretation is underpinned by said Boolean Arithmetic and truly reflects the Form of Distinction of said Boolean Arithmetic.
A distinction in Cyberspace defines an Object which is distinct from the remainder of CyberSpace. Such Objects may be iteratively distinguished with respect to each other to an arbitrary degree. From such a distinction of Objects within CyberSpace, we have determined that Classes of Objects may, likewise, be distinguished. A distinction of the Form and Substance of such an Object may be made with respect to the existence of the Object. Thus, within the virtual reality of CyberSpace, we have determined that:
the Class of an Object is to the Form of said Object,
it is also that:
an actual instance of said Object is to the Substance of the Object.
Beyond the bounds of CyberSpace, an actual instance of said Object is merely perceived and understood in an intellectual realm to behave and conform according to various intellectual rules and standards, or methods of behavior. In this case, the phrase xe2x80x9cintellectual rules and standardsxe2x80x9d suggests a mathematical framework for evaluating the relationships which may exist among Classes of Objects. The Class of an Object is thus distinguished by the rules and standard of behavior to which it conforms, and a distinction is indicated.
Accordingly, we have determined that the Form of a Class of Objects may be extended to include new methods and give rise to the Form of a new Class of Objects. Because each Class is distinct, the issue of inheritence arises as to the methods which are passed from the parent Class to the child Class as an extension of the parent Class. Amusingly, there is a strong analogy between the rules and Forms of inheritence between Classes and the rules and Forms of inheritence implicit in the treatment of independent and dependent claims within 37 CFR 1.75 and related sections.
Further, the Substance of Object may only persist over time if the Object posseses a private memory or storage capability, in contrast to the public memory which is the remainder of CyberSpace. This raises the issue of communication between Objects within CyberSpace. In this regard, CyberSpace is considered as a medium where signal messages may be exchanged between Objects. The message exchange may follow either a procedural or exception-driven processing protocol, whereas this distinction of protocols conforms to the Form of said Boolean Arithmetic.
It is a feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a practical solution to perceiving the substantive meaning of measurements, represented as digitized information, in regard to an actual physical or virtually conceptual, event, or series of events.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to efficiently distinguish and organize the Form and Substance of a Virtual Sensor relating to the autonomous processing of the Virtual Sensor.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a Graphic User Interface which allows and supports the construction of Sensor Objects from the standard libraries of ObservationMethod Objects and ExpressionMethod Objects.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to clarify an intellectual design or generic framework where it is structured in such a way as to allow a yet unspecified set of specifications to be processed. The assumption of the underlying CyberSpace enable such structure to be constructed as virtual forms which are conformed or transformed into actual forms at a later time, and then instantiated as an Object of Substance.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to clarify the substantive Variables and Methods inherent in an observation process and formalize the Variables and Methods as a class of Object, called the ObservationMethod Object Class, which inherently supports the Variables and Methods.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a library of common ObservationMethod Objects to serve as a standard library of means for observation of the digitized information of the Virtual Sensor, whereby access to a wide variety of digitized information, in a wide variety of conventional file and CyberSpace Object formats, is actively and immediately supported.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a library of common ObservationMethod Objects to serve as an example library of techniques to allow synchronous or asynchronous access to any file or Object, which may be addressed by a Universal Resource Locator (URL), and its derivative forms, including, but not limited to, Telnet, FTP, etc.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to clarify the substantive Variables and Methods inherent in an expression process and formalize the Variables and Methods as an abstract class of Object, called the ExpressionMethod Object Class, which inherently supports the Variables and Methods.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a library of common ExpressionMethod Objects to serve as a standard library of means for expressing the substantive meaning, of the digitized information of the Virtual Sensor, within various device contexts.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a Graphic User Interface which allows and supports the dynamic construction of complete ExpressionMethod Objects.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to clarify the substantive Variables and Methods inherent in an evaluation process and formalize the Variables and Methods as an abstract class of Object, called the EvaluationMethod Object Class, which inherently supports the Variables and Methods.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a library of common EvaluationMethod Objects to serve as a standard library of means for evaluating the substantive meaning, of the digitized information of the Virtual Sensor, with respect to established averages, ranges of possible value, and other statistical quantities and formulas which relate to, and describe the behavior of, the target event, or series of events, and conditions, or series of conditions.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a library of common EvaluationMethod Objects to serve as an example library of techniques to demonstrate software programming techniques for a variety of statistical methods, which may serve as the basis for more advanced statistical analysis and rendering specification.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to formulate the nature of the EvaluationMethod.class Object such that a so-called xe2x80x9cNull Evaluationxe2x80x9d Method may exist for any defined RenderingMethod.class Object Method. This allows arbitrary binary information to be passed directly through from the sensor device to the expression device, without interpretation
It is another feature and an advantage of the current invention that for each RenderingMethod.class Object, it is possible to construct a so-called xe2x80x9cIdentityxe2x80x9d ExpressionMethod.class Object by pairing the RenderingMethod.class Object with the xe2x80x9cNullxe2x80x9d EvaluationMethod.class Object, so as to form a single pair rendering expression. For all such xe2x80x9cIdentityxe2x80x9d ExpressionMethod.class Objects, the rendering will be directly, immediately, and exactly be determined by the observation readings.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to clarify the substantive Variables and Methods inherent in a rendering process and formalize the Variables and Methods as a class of Object, called the RenderingMethod Object Class, which inherently supports the Variables and Methods.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a library of common RenderingMethod Objects to serve as a standard library of means for rendering a physical manifestation which corresponds to the result of the corresponding EvaluationMethod Object, within the ExpressionMethod Object of the Virtual Sensor. It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a library of common RenderingMethod Objects to serve as an example library of techniques to demonstrate the use of commercially available xe2x80x9cAbstract Windows Toolkitxe2x80x9d techniques for visual expression via a Graphic User Interface, and other techniques for expression via virtual device drivers which may, in turn, control any variety of devices which may be controlled via the stream of the digitized information which results from the corresponding EvaluationMethod Object, within the ExpressionMethod Object of the Virtual Sensor.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a Graphic User Interface which allows and supports the construction of SiteProfile Objects as a collection of Sensor Objects.
It is another feature and advantage of the present invention to provide a Graphic User Interface which allows and supports the construction of ExpressionMethod Objects from the standard libraries of EvaluationMethod Objects and RenderingMethod Objects. This allows for a standard library of expressions to be constructed from a standard library of renderings and evaluations.
After proper analysis of the methods of collecting data, we determined that any method of collecting data and then ascertaining the meaning of the data, should be represented as a xe2x80x9cVirtual Sensorxe2x80x9d. This Virtual Sensor is formulated as an Object, and consists of several components which are also formulated as Objects. A critical characteristic of such CyberSpace Objects is that they have independent and dependent relationships with each other.
The first of these components is to determine the information that needs to be collected, how is it observed and what is the system for recording the observation. The second component is to determine how to evaluate questions regarding the collected data, such as xe2x80x9cDoes the information represent an advantageous or disadvantageous condition?xe2x80x9d The last component of a Virtual Sensor is to define a method of expressing, or otherwise displaying, the data in a form that is easily comprehended. Accordingly, we have determined the following definitions and features of data collectors:
Sensor: an entity that comprises a Probe which is capable of Observation, Evaluation, and Expression.
Probe: an entity that appraises a condition with a unit of measure that conforms to the reason for measuring.
Observation: a method that establishes rules for measuring a condition to produce a reading that can be recorded in accordance with those rules.
Evaluation: a method of reviewing readings from a method of measuring and determining its state based on a set of norms appropriate for the readings.
Expression: a method of rendering, in symbolic forms appropriate to the sensor, the information which has been observed and evaluated.
In light of new advances in modern computers and programming systems and the above mentioned components which comprise the process of sensing, it is appropriate to seek a formal mathematical paradigm which simulates this logical process of observation and expression, thus clarify correct and useful perception.
In view of this current state of the technology, we have found that the transformation of a conventional. Probe device into a Virtual Sensor Object within the CyberSpace environment suggests that the Virtual Sensor Object should address the above issues of inheritence, memory, and the exchange of messages. As a general strategy for addressing these issues with respect to a specific Class of Objects, construct a Class such that an Object instance of said Class may function as a self-contained entity within CyberSpace, to the greatest degree possible.